Manage Concussion Care with the "Four P's" - Prioritize, Plan, Pace and Position
1
PRIORITIZE
What is important?
- Decide: What is important? What are you able to do based on how you currently feel?
- Break daily activities into:
- Urgent: must be done today.
- Important: must be done in next few days.
- For later: must be done this week or month.
- Don’t need to/can’t do: can it wait until you are feeling better?
- Help needed: can someone do it for you?
3
PACE
How are you going to do it?
Take breaks if you don’t feel well.
After a concussion, your brain is less able to do tasks that were once automatic (e.g. tasks you have a lot of practice doing). It may take more time to complete tasks as you recover.
Complete the task over stages (you may not be able to finish everything all at once).
Plan tasks throughout the day so you aren’t doing too much at one time3
2
PLAN
What are you going to do?
- Organize what you need to do.
- Do tasks that use more energy at times in the day when you feel best.
- Make rest breaks part of your routine.
- Planning saves mental energy and helps you avoid trying to remember what to do and when to do it during the day.
4
POSITION
Where are you going to do it?
- Noisy, busy and distracting environments make it hard to concentrate and will us up more energy
- Think about your environment and how you stand/sit in it.
- Your environment can make a difference in how you feel.
Source: Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. Concussion Care & You: A Handbook for Parents and Kids. (Page 9)
Manage Concussion Care with the “Four P’s” – Prioritize, Plan, Pace and Position